The sum of $84.06 may not sound like much but it is symbolic of a new era at Manteca’s City hall.

That is the amount the City of Lathrop will pay for its 50 percent share of the electricity to power the railroad crossing warning signals on West Yosemite Avenue for the past year.

And going forward on a quarterly basis, Lathrop has agreed to pay half of what Manteca is billed by PG&E for electricity to power the signals.

The tracks crossing Yosemite Avenue are on — or almost on — the boundary between the two cities.

And while crossing warning signals are on both sides of the tracks, the control box that is connected to PG&E’s system is within Manteca’s jurisdiction.

As a result, Manteca has for years been paying the cost of electricity to operate both sets of crossing warning signals.

The oversight was covered as part of Manteca’s municipal leaders promise to leave no stone unturned in their bid to put a stretch of booking disarray in the review mirror.

In doing so, they are diligently working to rectify past errors or omissions.

The City Council tonight will consider approving a 10-year agreement with Lathrop for the cost sharing agreement.

The agreement covers bills going back to February 2023.

Although the situation has existed for a much longer period, there are legal limits to how far back such a debt can be collected especially given the fact one paryt had no idea they essentially had a liability to pay it.

A similar arrangement happened back in the mid-1990s when it was discovered Lathrop had exceeded its 14.7 percent share of the Manteca wastewater treatment plant capacity they are assured of having access to under the original deal that secured federal funding designed to address sewer issues in Lathrop.

Lathrop had exceeded the 14.7 percent limit for nearly five years but Manteca  plant operators didn’t realize it until the fifth year.

In that agreement, Lathrop paid for excess use going back two years.

Lathrop now has its own wastewater treatment plant but still uses the Manteca plant for some of its wastewater treatment needs.

The council meets tonight at 6 p.m. at the Civic Center, 1001 W. Center St.

To contact Dennis Wyatt, email dwyatt@mantecabulletin.com